Todays Topic: “Shop OR Adopt”
Surely everyone's heard the words “adopt don't shop” before... It's a common mantra chanted by many an animal lover for all species of animals. I really respect this stance as rescuers truly have good hearts, but it unfortunately causes a divide and unnecessary and unfounded judgements and assumptions about breeders.
The issue with this phrase is that it completely diminishes the importance of quality breeders of any species of animal (rodent, reptile, canine, feline etc!) There ARE people that will argue that no human being is entitled to animal ownership, therefore the desire to support quality breeders who aspire to maintain purity of lines and breed to a well conformed show standard is unjustified. Of course while I understand and respect this opinion, I won't be touching on this perspective in this info post.
There are a couple issues with “adopt don't shop” - number one for me is that this saying has unintentionally instilled faith in most people that rescues are all inherently good. This unfortunately is not true. The concept of rescue is lovely and when executed properly, provides an escape and better life for many animals. Sadly, since rescues and NFP organizations can accept donations without transparency, you may not know when your funds are being used inappropriately. many people will operate a business under the guise of rescuing and will actually profit from donations and adoption fees while cutting corners, skipping vet care and overcharging. A good rescue puts the money back into the vet care, enrichment, socialization and advertisement of the animals in their care. Rescue isn't rescue if it's moving an animal from one bad situation into another bad situation!
In retrospect, it has caused many to develop an automatic distaste for anyone who supports breeders. Surprisingly you'll not often find someone who shops at a breeders knocking someone who chooses to rescue, but the opposite cannot often be said. So technically the opposite of the previous point is that “adopt don't shop” instills the idea in people that breeders are inherently bad and in it for profit.
There is no profit in producing animals if you're doing it properly. The cost of a well bred animal seems excessive to some because you're getting more - you quite often literally get what you pay for. Higher purchase points mean the animals come fully vetted, with health testing, records, pedigrees and guarantees in place. The money in a quality organization goes to the food that the parents and offspring consume, the vet bills for the parents testing and offspring treatments (species dependent, rats do not have testing or vaccinations, but SHOULD be treated for ectoparasites prophylactically), enrichment and etc. The motive behind every good breeder is to improve upon the health, conformation and temperament of the species they work with. The motive behind every good rescue is to be a refuge for the animals who did NOT come from good breeders or ended up in the hands of BAD owners - because every good breeder takes their babies home!!
Rescues can be shady just like breeders can be shady. It's really important to ask lots of questions when adopting or purchasing an animal, especially care, husbandry and record questions. Ask about the temperament of the animals and if they do any sort of assessments or monitor anything about the animals in their care.
So here we go – I move that we do our best to twist that phrase in our mind to instead be, “Adopt OR Shop – just do it responsibly!”
I'd like to arm everyone with questions to ask and what to look for when you're scouting for a source for a new pet. These boxes should be ticked no matter where you choose to put your money.
● How the animals are housed: rescues AND breeders should be UTD on current best practice information for each of the animals that they care for. There is no excuse for inappropriate housing or husbandry, ever. ● What they are feeding: even in emergency situations, one should make sure they have nutritionally complete diets available for all the animals that they do/may care for prior to obtaining said animal. ● Temperament of the animals: how do they gauge this, and how do they decide what animal(s) would fit in well with your family. Do they adopt/sell based on aesthetic only or do they try to pair animals with families that will suit? ● Proper quarantine and adoption policies (for rats): - No organization should EVER support or endorse skipping quarantine when introducing new rats. The rescue/breeder needs to observe 2+ weeks quarantine as do pet owners, ANY time you bring in new animals or expose them to new pathogens (ANY new animals including other species, or from not washing hands after a pet store). - No rescue or breeder should EVER adopt out single juvenile rats unless extenuating circumstances (eg only one is surrendered, if there is 2 or more they should be kept in groups of 2 – 3.) Because of quarantine, being solo during a formative time of their life is damaging to their mental health. Juveniles should NEVER be adopted out solo. ● Adoption form: if the rescue or breeder you are considering does not have any adoption process you should be concerned. It's important to fill out a form to some degree so the organization can keep your contact information for the future, as well as get an idea of what kind of owner you will be, and what temperament of animal will suit you/your family. If an adoption form is not require, you cannot know for sure that you will be matched with the right animals, and you can guarantee that the organization does NOT care about the well being of their animals or where they end up. ● Handling aggressive animals: it's pertinent for some species [read: most] that aggression at times be recognized as poor mental health; often aggression not caused by hormones causes the animal longterm anxiety. Depending on the species and their lifespan, and the level of their aggression/triggers, it may be kinder to let the animal be at peace rather than adopt them out. Obviously referencing rats in this post, so on that note, moving homes and going through quarantine is stressful for most rats let alone one that is fear and anxiety ridden. With their lifespans being so short, it's important that the rescue or breeder you chooses does not ANTHROPOMORPHIZE their animals, and makes decisions based on what's right and ethical, from the animals perspective, as opposed to what makes us feel good/happy. Euthanasia isn't the worst thing that can happen to a prey animal. Any organization that adopts out bitey rats or does not notify potential adopters of the aggression should be avoided. ● If an organization has outdated policies, it may be a sign to avoid them as well. An example of this would be refusing to adopt to someone who also owns reptiles, thus ostracizing someone who is capable of being a quality owner just like anyone else. No organization should discriminate for any reason other than suspicion of poor care/bad home.
When it comes to rats in rescues it's sort of a mixed bag. Many of them are aggressive but many are wonderful creatures who will happily fill your heart and home. It's not always easy to discern what you'll get or why it will behave the way it does.
The first instinct when you meet an aggressive or anxious animal is to assume that it's been abused, but with rats that can be pretty well confirmed to NOT be the case, 99/100 times. It's more common for rats to be neglected as opposed to abused. The worst that can come from this is that the rat will show their base genetic temperament no holds barred, since they haven't experienced human interaction yet. These rats, with gentle encouragement, will settle and enjoy social interaction sooner rather than later. Rats who are genetically anxious or aggressive will act like a rat that's been "abused" - shying from your hand, puffing up, hissing, lunging, territorial displays, excessive marking, irritated bruxism... The same way one would expect an 'abused' animal to behave. With this in mind, please be careful when labeling animals in shelters as 'abused.' It's a lot more common that animals are neglected and showing their TRUE temperament as opposed to one that's been masked through consistent handling. Rats get the worst end of the deal, being a species where aggression is sadly accepted (though I don't understand why, it's simple to breed it out of a line!) so unethical feeder breeders or mill breeders who carelessly colony breed will mass produce subpar quality rats. This is where "rescue" comes in - buying a feeder rat will NEVER be rescue, as you're lining the pocket of whoever produced the animal and making space for another one to fill it's spot, subsequently condemning DIFFERENT animals to death. It's a cycle that we can't break unless we call out poor breeding practices at their root. Remember not all breeders are evil, and not all rescues are good. It's up to YOU, the hopeful pet parent, to do your research and ask hard questions. Good rescues will assess their animals and be upfront, and a good breeder will always be working to breed away from unfavourable traits, thus increasing the likelihood of receiving quality pets.